Cowboys and Alices
by clueless624
Summary: Mikan wants to escape her boring small town life. When mysterious cowboy Natsume arrives in town, her wishes seem to come true. But she gets more than she bargained for. Because in the wild west...anything can happen.
1. Prologue

_It was a quiet night in the small town. Translucent clouds obscured the small sliver of moon, only allowing meager pale light to shine upon the silent streets. Suddenly, a hoard of rodents scurried out from a shadow's building. Emerging from among the rats, a cloaked figure hurriedly scanned the empty street before stumbling towards a large building at the end of the street. The figure looked up at the building and hesitated. Pulling down the hood of the cloak, a woman with brown hair was revealed. Looking into her arms, she whispered something to the bundle she carried. Then the woman walked into the side alley of the building and put her bundle down in front of a door. She knew that the bundle would be found in the morning when the owner of the building opened the door at exactly six o'clock expecting a milk delivery. For a week, the woman had observed the owner. He was very punctual—never early, never late. She knew her bundle would be taken care of well by this man. Also, Kaoru's husband and children where in this town, too. Her child would be safe here. The woman tucked a slip of paper into the bundle's wrappings before kissing the bundle and whispering a few words. Then without a sound, she disappeared._

_The bundle moved slightly on the dirt of the alley. If one looked, one would see a small face among the cloth wrappings. The paper waved in the small breeze. The last whispered words of the woman lingered in the chilly night air. _

_"I'm sorry…"_

"…_Mikan."_

* * *

><p><strong><em>AN:<em>**_ Hey everyone! I realized the other day that there are no Western Gakuen Alice fics. So I decided to create one! This is my first ever fanfiction, so please give me **constructive** criticism so I can improve my writing. I'm also looking for a beta reader. Anyone interested?_

_Thanks for reading this super short prologue!_

_Oh! Almost forgot the..._

**_Disclaimer: _**_I don't own Gakuen Alice. The amazing Tachibana Higuchi does!_


	2. Chapter 1

Natsume was having a bad day.

Dodging yet another bullet, he ran towards the shelter of a stack of crates. He pressed himself against the wooden planks and listened for the sound of his pursuers' footsteps, hand ready on his gun.

_There must have been a presence detection alice among them for them to find me so easily. Damn that Persona! The info that I need the most he doesn't include in the report._

Sandwiched between crates and a wall, Natsume recalculated his plans. His destination, the Cooper building, was in sight. But he had to cross a wide expanse of desert to get there. No cover was available between his hiding place and the building, not even a meager bush. Looking up, Natsume saw a ladder to the roof the building he was hiding by. On the roof, expensive satellites and antennas were perched. Adjusting his mask over his crimson eyes and pulling his hat lower on his head, Natsume put his new plan into action.

* * *

><p>"Where did that disgusting little bugger go?" growled a man with pale green hair and dark emerald eyes. "I can't sense him anywhere. I swear once I get my hands on him…"<p>

"Calm down, Kurata. Threats won't help us capture the Black Cat."

"But when I _do_ find him…"

The man called Kurata left his threat hanging between him and his comrade with a twisted sneer on his face. Kurata's companion, a tall man with ghostly white hair, adjusted his worn leather vest, and absently brushed imaginary dust off his right shoulder.

"But we haven't found him yet, have we, Kurata?" he scoffed. "So until then, your empty threats will have to wait."

"What are you calling empty? You don't think I can follow through with them? Well, wait and see, you…!" Kurata's angry retort trailed off into silence as he realized his companion had already began to walk away.

"Hey! Hey, wait up, Takoushi! You…!"

"Be quiet. You talk too loudly. Do you think the Black Cat is deaf? If you blathered off every single time you were insulted, nothing would get done. Save everyone's ears and shut up. Let's instead do something useful and find our elusive friend."

* * *

><p>"<em>Imai really lives up to her reputation"<em> was Natsume's thought as he observed his handiwork around him. All the guards were out cold thanks to his new InvisiPunchGun 1.9. With the pull of a trigger, a blast of air was delivered, powerful enough to render a person unconscious. Natsume cast one last appreciative glance at the gun before pulling out another and making his way towards the locked room in front of him. Infiltrating the building was only too simple after he noticed the ladder. Barriers were cast on the satellites and antennas to protect them from any outside attack. Luckily for Natsume, the barrier also protected him from the detection alice. Leaping rooftop to rooftop, he had made his way to the Cooper building.

Now he was nearing the end of his mission. The only thing between him and success was…

_Only a simple lock?_

Natsume was surprised. Persona had told him nothing about how this room was guarded. He had expected lasers, passwords, or at least an alice recognition scanner. Uneasy, he pulled out another gun and melted the lock with his fire alice. The door swung open.

And all hell broke lose.

Scores of alice guards attacked him as Natsume fought his way towards the pedestal in the middle of the room. He somehow managed to grab the artifact on it. Still fighting off guards, he clutched a teleportation alice stone and disappeared.

Appearing back at headquarters, Natsume collapsed on the floor, the pain suddenly washing over him in a crimson tide. The guards had done more injury to him that he had initially thought. Natsume winced. His injuries would probably put him in the hospital for at least three weeks. He looked at the item that he went through so much pain to get.

_Why would the superiors want this dingy thing? I could buy one of these in a second-hand store._

In his hands was an old, chipped jewelry box. On the lid, there was a painting of a small town. The caption below the picture named the town as Lavender Junction.

_Lavender Junction? Isn't that where…?_

Natsume didn't finish his thought as he succumbed to the blackness of unconsciousness.

* * *

><p>Mikan pensively brushed her fingertips across the words on the crinkly paper again.<p>

_Her name is Mikan. She was born on January 1 of this year. Please take care of her._

Even though she had read these words numerous times already, she was still entranced by them. These words were the only hint to her mysterious past. When she was 11 months old, her grandpa, Tasuko Sakura, found her on the doorstep of his saloon with this note. No one knew who had left her. After asking around, he discovered that a mysterious woman who had been staying at the saloon's inn had disappeared the night before Mikan was found. Her name was Yuki Kamazawa. But when he inquired at the government office about her, the officials said that no such person existed. So he adopted Mikan as his granddaughter and raised her as his own.

Even after 18 years, her grandpa still searched for the woman. He had the advantage of being the owner of the town's only saloon, Horseshoe Saloon, so he saw everyone who came through the town. Everyone who visited Lavender Junction also visited its saloon. Locals and travelers alike came to the saloon in the evenings to share gossip and news while enjoying delicious food.

"MIKAN! Get down here right now, young lady! Do you know what time it is?"

Startled, Mikan almost fell off her bed. She hurriedly stashed the note back into her bedside table drawer and glanced at the clock. It was ten past four.

Wait, ten minutes after four o'clock?

"Oh my gosh! Is it that late already?" yelped the brunette. She rushed out of her bedroom, attempting to put her long hair into a neat bun. She passed through several rooms before sliding to a halt in the main room of the saloon. The ankle-length skirt of her homemade dress swished at the sudden stop. In front of her, her grandfather tapped his foot impatiently.

"Late again, Mikan."

"I'm sorry, grandpa. I lost track of time," she answered sheepishly, scratching the back of her head.

"Well, make up for lost time then. Go to the kitchen, and Anna will give you instructions from there," answered her grandpa gruffly. He ruffled her hair affectionately as they both shared a smile. Mikan brushed past him and made her way to the kitchen.

"It's good to have you home, Mikan," Tasuko whispered to her retreating back. He hadn't had her home for more than a few months at a time since she started attending the local Alice school when she was five. It was a boarding school, and students were only allowed to come home for holidays and the summer. Now that she had graduated from school, she had time to work at the saloon alongside him during the evening rush. Also, the old man loved having her lively, cheerful demeanor and bright smiles around all the time.

* * *

><p>"Anna, I'm here!" sang Mikan as she twirled into the kitchen, tying an apron on.<p>

"Finally! Took you long enough, Mikan! Stir the pot on the fire, please. Don't let the stew stick to the edges." Anna looked up from the dough she was kneading to make sure Mikan did as she was told. Flour covered her forearms, and wisps of light pink hair threatened to escape the careful bun on her head. Mikan giggled at the bedraggled state of her friend.

"With all the flour in your hair, you look like a graying old lady!" she pointed out, smiling teasingly.

"Thank you for the compliment," Anna huffed. "Now get to work."

"Yes, ma'am! So, what's on the menu tonight?" Mikan asked her.

"Chicken pot pie with apple cobbler for dessert."

Mikan hummed with anticipation. Anna's cooking alice allowed her to turn ordinary dishes into something scrumptious beyond description. She couldn't wait to eat tonight's creations…

"Mikan? …Mikan! Snap out of it! You're letting the stew scorch!"

"Oh! So sorry! I'll start stirring right now!"

Anna shook her head at her friend's absentmindedness and returned to kneading the dough. The two girls chattered while making dinner for a whole town plus travelers. Since it was summer, the saloon had been busier with all the returning students plus the cowboys who came through around this time each year.

"Hey, Mikan. It's almost five thirty. I'm just about done here, so you can go ahead and get ready now. I just have to put all of these into the ovens," Anna said.

"Alright. I'll see you at ten to clean up." Mikan took off her splattered apron and exchanged it for a clean one. After checking her hair in the mirror on the door, she walked out into the main room where people had already started to trickle in. Her grandpa was stationed at the bar already making drinks. Her grandpa had the beverage alice. Similar to Anna's, his alice allowed him to make unusual but delicious drinks. Due to this, the saloon was famous for having the best beer around.

Picking up the chalkboard by the door, Mikan wrote the down the menu for the day. Placing it by the entryway, she began to serve the customers coming in. A flash of dark pink raced by her.

"Misaki! Slow down! You're going to drop the food!"

The pink blur came to a stop.

"Don't worry, Mikan. You know I have never dropped anything as long as I have been working here."

The doppelganger alice gave Mikan a smile and continued on her way. Around the room, several more Misakis served the townspeople. The saloon never had to worry about hiring enough servers. With Misaki's alice, it wasn't necessary. She was the whole workforce. Mikan sometimes felt useless with all the Misaki duplicates running around efficiently. At least she didn't have to do as much work. Mikan checked the clock. Six o'clock. She glanced at the door. Any moment now…

A black haired woman with violet eyes stepped through the door. All eyes turned expectantly towards her.

"Hotaru!" Mikan shouted as she rushed to hug her best friend in the whole wide world.

BAKA! BAKA! BAKA!

Mikan ended up on her back, sprawled on the floor. A slight bruise was forming on her forehead.

"Ow! Hotaru, you meanie, do you have to do that every single time I see you?" Mikan whined.

"Sorry, I can't control this gun. It automatically shoots when it detects an idiot."

"Can you turn it off so I can give you a hug? Please?" Mikan pleaded with a pout. She turned her face hopefully towards Hotaru.

"Fine. Just this once. But you owe me free dinner for a week," Hotaru answered in a monotone voice. But the ghost of a smile was on her face. All the diners looked on the scene with amusement. They all knew that this would happen. Why shouldn't it? Without fail, every evening exactly at six o'clock, Hotaru Imai walked into the Horseshoe Saloon to eat dinner with her best friend, Mikan Sakura.

"Hotaru, take your seat. I'll be with you in bit!" Mikan chirped as she made her way to the kitchen to grab dinner for her and Hotaru.

Hotaru made her way to a corner booth in the back of the room. This was their table, the one that she and Mikan sat at every time that Hotaru ate at the saloon-which was everyday. But someone was occupying her seat. Hotaru narrowed her eyes. Someone was going to feel the full force of her wrath soon. By the way the man was dressed, it was obvious that he was a cowboy. He had his hat pulled low over his eyes, feet crossed on top of the table, and a white rabbit in his arms.

_Click!_

The man almost fell out of his seat, startled out of his rest with the sound of the camera.

"Get your filthy feet off the table and get out of my seat. And now you owe me fifty dollars as a fee for sitting here," Hotaru said, her voice monotone.

The man took off his hat revealing blond hair underneath and raised his blue eyes to see the person who had disturbed his nap.

"I-imai? Wh-what are you doing here?"

"Nogi." Hotaru acknowledged. "I could ask you the same."

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Here's the first chapter! Hope this gives you all a bit more of an idea to what this story is kinda about. Are my characters too OOC? Are there any aspects of them that I'm missing? Any questions? Comments? Constructive criticism? Recomendations for the plot? Click the button below! :D Thanks for reading!<strong>


	3. Chapter 2

_The man took off his hat revealing blond hair underneath and raised his blue eyes to see the person who had disturbed his nap._

_"I-imai? Wh-what are you doing here?"_

_"Nogi." Hotaru acknowledged. "I could ask you the same."_

The two stared at each other for a few seconds. After a silent battle of wills, the blond cowboy reluctantly broke eye contact.

"You haven't changed at all, Hotaru," he grumbled as he pulled out his wallet.

"And you are exactly the same," Hotaru answered as she received the payment. "Now get out of my seat."

The cowboy quickly stood up and pulled out the chair for Hotaru. Not acknowledging this small act of chivalry, she just sent a cold glare his way.

"You didn't answer my question, Nogi. What are you doing here?" Hotaru frostily asked as she sat with impeccable posture.

"Well, you see, after I graduated, I became a cowboy because…"

"Oh! Hotaru, who's this?"

The cowboy quickly turned and was surprised to see a petite brunette holding two steaming chicken pot pies.

"You're so slow, Mikan. Hurry up and give me the bowl. I'm hungry," Hotaru demanded.

"Sorry! I would have gotten here earlier, but I got sidetracked by Mrs. Seichi. You know her daughter? Well, she's going to be joining the school next year, and she wanted to talk to me about how Lana will need to…"

"I neither care nor want to know. Just give me the food already, or I'm going to have to charge you for making me wait," Hotaru interrupted.

"Ah! Sorry!" Mikan apologized as she handed Hotaru her dinner before she herself sat down. "And you still need to introduce me to your friend here, Hotaru."

"This is Ruka Nogi, and he is not my friend. Nogi, this idiotic girl is Mikan Sakura," Hotaru deadpanned.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Nogi," Mikan said as she offered her hand.

"Please, just call me Ruka," he replied as he shook her hand.

"Then you can use my first name, too, Ruka." Mikan smiled at him. "Why don't you take a seat here? Misaki will bring you a dinner."

"Thank you, Mikan."

"No problem. So, how do you know my best friend?" Mikan asked him. She looked at him expectantly. Ruka almost fell out of his seat again out of surprise.

_The Ice Queen has friends? How can she have any, let alone being best friends with a person who has a completely opposite personality?_

He quickly looked at Hotaru who in turn gave him a menacing look. He swore that sometimes she could read his mind. Turning his head back towards Mikan, he shakily answered her question.

"Uh…Hotaru and I went to the same school for two years."

"Oh! You must have been at the school in Alice Town when Hotaru did that exchange program a couple years back!" Mikan smiled at her brilliant epiphany. "So that means you must have an amazing alice! Only super useful alices get to attend the Alice Town school."

"Um…well…my alice isn't anything that spectacular…" Ruka mumbled.

"Don't say that! I'm sure your alice is wonderful! What is it?" Mikan looked at him with pleading eyes.

Ruka hesitated. Sure, his alice was useful but it wasn't _that_ amazing. But as he looked at Mikan's face, he felt his hesitation slipping.

"Nogi, it's useless to resist the puppy eyes. Just tell her," Hotaru said.

"Fine. I have the animal pheromone alice." He turned his face away in embarrassment already feeling his cheeks warm.

_Click!_

"Imai!" Ruka exclaimed with dismay.

"What? Your pictures create an unprecedented amount of profit. This shot will gain me at least a couple thousand," Hotaru said unapologetically. Mikan, though, didn't notice any of this strange exchange.

"The animal pheromone alice? Wow! That's so cool!" Mikan gushed. "That's so useful! My alice is just plain old nullification. You can't do much with that! But with your alice, Ruka, you can do so much! Like ask the mice to find something, or travel by flying with an eagle, or…"

As Mikan rattled off the numerous possibilities of his alice, Ruka felt a strange feeling start to rise within his chest. She was the only person to see his alice this way, as something helpful and amazing, not as some girlish silliness. The only person besides…

"Ruka, you were telling me what you're doing in Lavender Junction when this idiot interrupted. Continue," Hotaru ordered.

"Oh…yes…um, well, after I graduated, I became a cowboy because of my alice. I can easily herd cows across from one place to another. To this day, I haven't lost a single one," he declared proudly. "Right now, I'm on my way back west to pick up another herd to take east. My deadline to be at the farm is in a month. Since I'm ahead of schedule, I'm staying here for about two weeks for some rest."

"Which inn are you staying at, Ruka?" Mikan inquired.

"I think the name of the inn is Horseshoe Inn? Do you know where that is?"

"You're staying here, bunny boy. This saloon also is an inn." Hotaru rolled her eyes at Ruka's stupidity.

"Oh, at least I'm in the right place," Ruka smiled. "I'll bring in my bags after I eat. Now it's your turn, Hotaru. Why are _you_ here?" He sat back, anticipating a long answer.

"I live here," Hotaru said not looking up from her pot pie.

"Y-you _live_ here?" Ruka asked unbelievingly.

"Are you deaf? That's what I just said." Hotaru glared at him over her fork.

"Hotaru! Don't be mean! He's just surprised, that's all," Mikan chided. She turned and addressed Ruka. "Hotaru's lived here her whole life. I've known her forever! That's why we're best friends! Right, Hotaru?" Mikan expectantly glanced at Hotaru. But the best friend ignored her and continued eating. "Anyways, you arrived just in time, Ruka. The town's annual end of summer festival is coming up next week! You will definitely enjoy it. There are games, contests, and lots of food! My favorite part is the dance at end of the night! They always string up lights across the square, and have a big bonfire in the middle. It's so magical," Mikan sighed dreamily.

"Sounds amazing! I'll definitely come—"

_Bam!_

The double doors to the saloon opened suddenly, and most of the people in the room flinched.

"Alright, people, no need to panic. The sheriff is here!"

Ruka almost fell out of his chair for the third time since he arrived. Hotaru was heard to mutter under her breath _drama queen _and _showoff_. Mikan abruptly stood up and ran toward the newcomer—well, newcomers. Upon closer inspection, there were actually three people standing in the doorway.

"Permy!" she complained. "Why do you always have to enter that way? You're disturbing the other diners!"

The girl called Permy stepped into the room, shadowed by the two other people. She shot a disdainful look at Mikan, dark green eyes glittering with annoyance.

"Would you stop calling me that? That was my nickname when we were, like, ten! And what are you going to do about me disturbing the diners, hm? Arrest me? Honey, please," she scoffed. "I'm the sheriff. I can do whatever I want even if that includes making grand entrances into saloons."

"Fine, _Sumire_. Grab a seat, and I'll grab dinner for you three," she sighed. "Hey, Kitsu. Hey, Koko," she greeted as she turned towards the kitchen.

"Hey, Mikan!" both men cheerfully responded. Mikan flashed them a smile before walking away.

"Let's go, boys," Permy snapped. "Dinner is waiting."

When Mikan returned with three dinners, she was startled to find an amused Hotaru, a trapped-looking Ruka, and a predatory Sumire.

Setting down the dishes, she glanced at the men called Kitsu and Koko and asked, "What's up with Sumire?"

The two men looked up. Everyone always thought the two were twins. Both had matching sandy brown hair and mischievous grins. But the obvious difference between them was that Kitsu almost always had his eyes closed (Mikan wondered how he could see) and Koko had brown eyes.

"Oh," Kitsu answered. "Sumire's been in her fangirl mode since she saw blondie over there." He jerked a thumb towards Ruka. "You know how she gets."

Mikan sighed. Sumire had a tendency to flip out whenever she saw a cute boy. She became instantly infatuated and wouldn't snap out of it until the chosen victim had fallen to her charms. Mikan and her friends jokingly called this her "fangirl" mode.

"Oh, shoot—!"

Mikan's exclamation was cut off short when she suddenly fell to the ground. Hotaru stood over her, a blank look on her face and BakaGun still smoking.

"You said shoot, so I did," Hotaru offered as an explanation. Mikan popped up from the floor with an angry pout on her face.

"Hotaru! You know that I don't mean _literally_ to shoot! It's just an expression!" Mikan shot her supposed best friend a hurt glare which Hotaru promptly ignored. "But anyway," Mikan continued with cheerful vigor, "I realized that we need to be introduced to each other!" She turned to Ruka. "Ruka, this here is our town's sheriff, Sumire Shouda. She has the cat-dog alice."

"It's a pleasure to meet you, handsome," Sumire all but purred, batting her eyelashes.

Mikan continued. "These two people over here are Kitsuneme and Kokoroyome. But you can just call them Kitsu and Koko. Although they look like it, they aren't twins. They're Sumire's deputies. Kitsu has the flying alice, and Koko has the mind-reading alice."

Koko and Kitsu acknowledged Ruka with a nod. Ruka just cast a nervous look at Koko.

"Ok, now that's out of the way…" Mikan muttered as she turned toward the whole room. "Hey!" she shouted, "Everyone! Hey! Listen up!"

The whole room became instantly quiet as heads turned towards Mikan. She pulled Ruka up forcefully from his chair.

"I'd like to introduce someone to you! This here is Ruka Nogi. He's new in town and will be staying for two weeks. Please treat him kindly! Thank you for your attention and enjoy the rest of your meal."

Mikan sat an embarrassed Ruka down into his chair. Koko leaned over to whisper into his ear.

"Don't worry. She does that to everyone."

Koko offered a smile before tucking into his hot dinner. Ruka returned the smile. He was going to like it here.

The first thing Natsume was aware of was the beeping of a heart monitor and the sterile smell of a hospital.

_So I'm still alive._

He slowly opened his eyes and recognized the tiled ceiling. Looking to the left, he spotted Subaru Imai writing furiously on a clipboard. With stern dark purple eyes behind practical glasses, the man exuded cold aura.

"How long have I been out?" Natsume asked the doctor. Subaru walked towards him and started to detach all the tubes and wires from Natsume's body.

"Twelve hours. You had two broken ribs, a pulled hamstring, and a sprained ankle plus numerous cuts, scratches, and bruises. I took care of everything but still recommend that you take a week or two of rest before attempting any other missions. Your body is exhausted because you used your alice too much." Subaru stopped abruptly with his report. Natsume heard the anger in the pause that followed.

"But?" Natsume glared at the doctor. He should have known there was more.

"But Persona has another mission for you. My instructions are to send you to headquarters as soon as you wake up. There are a change of clothes in the bathroom, and your horse is waiting outside." Subaru turned and walked towards the door. "I have left you enough to last two months on the table. Come to me when you need more." With that, the doctor turned down the corridor to attend to other patients.

Natsume grabbed the paper bag on the table before gingerly setting his feet on the ground. He changed and refreshed himself in the bathroom and made his way outside. At the hitching post, stood a large black horse. Natsume felt a swell of pride as he looked at Wildfire. Untamed and unbroken, this horse was the problem child of the Alice Town stables. For months, no trainer or rider was able to calm the horse enough to even approach him. No one was able to ride this horse—no one but him. Even Ruka had trouble calming the horse with his alice. Natsume mounted his horse and rode off to headquarters. What did Persona want with him now?

His question was quickly answered. As soon as Natsume walked into Persona's office and seated himself at the desk, a voice rang out in the eerie darkness of the room.

"Black Cat. Since it has come to my attention that you are…unwell, your next mission will be a low risk retrieval. Here's the information. Leave by tomorrow. Dismissed."

A folder slid across the desk. Natsume grabbed it and walked out of the room. He rode back to his house on the outskirts of town and went over the contents of the folder. He was surprised to see his destination: Lavender Junction. The same town on the old jewelry box. The same town that Aoi and Dad…

_No! Don't think about that! What's past is past. Focus on the present._ Natsume self-scolded. He couldn't afford to lose focus. He was Persona's top agent, and Natsume intended it to stay that way. He looked farther into the report and came across the picture of a person: a blurry photograph of a smiling girl. Natsume guessed that she was around his age, about eighteen or nineteen. She had her brown hair in ridiculous childish pigtails and was dressed in an equally childish blue gingham dress. The girl was posing in front of a carnival booth proudly showing a clear plastic bag to the camera. Natsume guessed that there was a goldfish inside. So this was the person he was supposed to retrieve.

_Hn. Pigtails looks stupid and harmless to me. Wonder what she did to warrant her retrieval._

He pushed the papers back into the folder. Lavender Junction was about a week's ride away. He should make it before the end of August. Before he completely closed the folder, he glanced at the girl's name.

Mikan Sakura.


	4. Chapter 3

_He pushed the papers back into the folder. Lavender Junction was about a week's ride away. He should make it before the end of August. Before he completely closed the folder, he glanced at the girl's name._

_Mikan Sakura._

* * *

><p>Natsume navigated the hallways of his one-story home lost in thought. Upon reaching his room, his movements were automatic, going through the familiar motions of packing for a mission. He would leave at dawn in order to get as much distance covered in one day. Finished with packing and now bored, he decided to look more thoroughly through the report. He spread the papers across his bedroom floor. Starting from the top, he started reading.<p>

He read all afternoon and into the evening. Why would such an insignificant girl have so much information on her? It was obvious that headquarters had done thorough research on the girl. Everything small detail about her was recorded: her friends, her neighbors over the years, her favorite foods, and even a detailed account of all the dresses she had owned. Who needed to know that? Natsume was stupefied. Why would Persona give him all this irrelevant information? He didn't need to know that Pigtails ate chocolate chip pancakes every Saturday morning in order to retrieve her. He just had to go to Lavender Junction, kidnap her, and return to Alice Town. Simple and easy. Natsume had done these kinds of missions before without knowing every single detail of the victim's life. What made this mission any different? He found his answer on the last page, a small slip of paper. The words were circled in red pen, declaring their importance.

_IMPORTANT: Victim must come __**willingly**__._

_Willingly?_ Natsume wondered what the heck _that_ meant. Where the superiors going soft? Perhaps daft? Since when did they care that the victim _wanted_ to come or not? Natsume returned the papers to the folder and retired for the night. He would think about it while on the trail.

Even as a child, Natsume had always been a light sleeper. So he had no trouble waking up at the crack of dawn. He comfortably moved through his house in the pitch dark, gathering supplies for the trip. Going outside, he loaded the minimal luggage onto Wildfire and rode east towards Lavender Junction. If he rode hard from dawn to dusk, he could reduce the trip from a week to five days. The sooner he got there, the sooner he could get this irksome mission over with. As he rode into the rising sun, Natsume couldn't help but wonder:

_Who exactly is Mikan Sakura?_

* * *

><p>Mikan loved Saturday mornings. It was the only time that Anna ever made her famous chocolate chip pancakes. And it was the only time Mikan ever woke up before seven o'clock with the exception of Christmas. So at six o'clock in the morning, the cheerful girl bounced out of her house, through the connecting hallway and into the saloon. Already, air carried the smell of pancakes and bacon. She inhaled deeply with a smile. Humming, she whirled around the main room of the saloon pulling chairs off tables, preparing for the flood of inn patrons and townspeople coming in for breakfast.<p>

"You have a beautiful singing voice."

Mikan quickly turned around to face the voice. She let out a sigh of relief when she saw that was Ruka who had spoken, leaning against the doorway connecting the inn to the saloon.

"Oh, good morning! You surprised me! No one is here usually this early on a Saturday." Mikan smiled at him. "And thank you for the compliment. If you really like that much, stay for dinner on Wednesday. That's open stage night for the saloon. Anyone can come go onstage to perform anything they want. And you're lucky you came the week of the festival. There'll be more performers this week since old residents of this town are coming back just for the festival this upcoming Friday." Mikan paused thoughtfully. "Some of my old classmates will be coming back, too. Some of them I haven't seen since we were ten! I hope that they'll come this year. Maybe you'll know some of them, Ruka! Some might have gone to the Alice Town school."

"I'm not too sure about that. I don't think there is anybody from my school that transferred from Lavender Junction," Ruka answered apologetically.

"Oh, well. But anyways, can you lend me a hand with the chairs? There are so many of them! If we get done earlier, we can eat breakfast earlier! Anna's chocolate pancakes go quickly, so we need to get to them first!"

Ruka just smiled at the girl's eagerness. He joined Mikan in setting tables and pulling down chairs. He was beginning to love Saturday mornings.

The days leading up to the festival passed by very quickly. At the end of every day, Ruka fell onto his bed at the Horseshoe Inn completely and utterly exhausted. The work seemed never ending. After breakfast on Saturday, he was immediately put to work building booths and the stage for the festival. After that, he was put to work bringing in hay bales. Then he was building tables. After that, he was stringing lights. Then, he was…

Ruka sighed. In addition to all the work, he also was running around avoiding his newly formed group of fangirls, which Sumire was a prominent member of. He had had experience escaping from fangirls while in school, but his new fangirls seemed more rabid than his old ones. He needed to come up with new escape plans.

_Maybe having my shirt off more than half of the time didn't help._

The weather had turned from hot to sweltering in Lavender Junction. Ruka felt sorry for Mikan who was cooped up in the stuffy kitchen with Anna preparing mountains of food for the festival. She had often come to him for comfort with a bruise on her face (Hotaru wasn't the comforting type) in search of relief from the heat and an overbearing Anna. They would chat amiably in the shade, hiding from Ruka's fangirls. He found Mikan to be a friendly, cheerful, and optimistic girl who often had her head in the clouds. She had dreams of leaving Lavender Junction for some exciting adventure and hoped to travel everywhere someday. Mikan was going to be a teacher at the Lavender Junction school in September. She told Ruka that she was nervous, but he saw that she was also excited. She started the Monday after the festival and would be teaching with her former teacher, Mr. Narumi. Ruka wondered what it would be like to teach alongside a former teacher. But when the image of a teacher with a frog popped into his head, he shuddered and stopped wondering.

Now it was Wednesday night, open stage night. He sat in the corner booth with Mikan, Hotaru, Sumire, Koko, and Kitsu. Ruka looked around to see an almost completely filled room which was incredible given the enormity of the saloon's main room. As the week had progressed, more and more people arrived in town. All the inns in town were just about full. People bustled around the room, exchanging greetings and catching up with each other. Ruka was amazed that so many people had lived in this small town at one time or another.

He turned his attention back to his shepherd's pie and the conversation at the table. Apparently, Mikan and Sumire were fighting again. Ruka failed to see why the two were "friends." They clashed everyday over the most trivial things and often were seen stomping away from each other in a bad mood. When they encountered each other again, they would apologize to each other and be good friends again. Ruka was confused with how their relationship worked. His thoughts were interrupted with a loud yell. Everyone's head turned towards the stage in anticipation. Tasuko Sakura held a microphone in his hand.

"Now that I've got your attention, I'm opening up the stage. Feel free to come up and perform. But keep it family friendly. We have children in the audience tonight," Tasuko gruffly said aiming a glare at a certain audience members. "Please try to keep your conversations at a minimum volume while there are performances going on. Thank you and enjoy the rest of your evening."

Putting the microphone back into the stand with some difficulty, Tasuko lumbered off the stage. The stage didn't stay empty for long. People started forming a line on the side of the stage.

Ruka hadn't had so much fun in a long time. One of the townspeople had an alice that allowed him to tell cheesy jokes that no one could resist laughing at. Another performed card tricks. The night flew past in a whirlwind of laughter. Forced by Sumire, Mikan finally got in line to perform. When she walked up on stage, the whole room cheered loudly.

"Ok, guys! This one's dedicated to all my friends including my new one, Ruka!"

Mikan signaled to the piano player to start. She started to sing.

_Sometimes I get so weird  
>I even freak myself out<br>I laugh myself to sleep  
>It's my lullaby<br>Sometimes I drive so fast  
>Just to feel the danger<br>I wanna scream  
>It makes me feel alive<em>

_Is it enough to love?_  
><em>Is it enough to breathe?<em>  
><em>Somebody rip my heart out<em>  
><em>And leave me here to bleed<em>  
><em>Is it enough to die?<em>  
><em>Somebody save my life<em>  
><em>I'd rather be anything but ordinary please<em>

_To walk within the lines_  
><em>Would make my life so boring<em>  
><em>I want to know that I<em>  
><em>Have been to the extreme<em>  
><em>So knock me off my feet<em>  
><em>Come on now give it to me<em>  
><em>Anything to make me feel alive<em>

_Is it enough to love?_  
><em>Is it enough to breathe?<em>  
><em>Somebody rip my heart out<em>  
><em>And leave me here to bleed<em>  
><em>Is it enough to die?<em>  
><em>Somebody save my life<em>  
><em>I'd rather be anything but ordinary please<em>  
><em>I'd rather be anything but ordinary please.<em>

_Let down your defences_  
><em>Use no common sense<em>  
><em>If you look you will see<em>  
><em>that this world is a beautiful<em>  
><em>accident turbulent suculent<em>  
><em>opulent permanent, no way<em>  
><em>I wanna taste it<em>  
><em>Don't wanna waste it away<em>

_Sometimes I get so weird_  
><em>I even freak myself out<em>  
><em>I laugh my self to sleep<em>  
><em>It's my lullaby<em>

_Is it enough?_  
><em>Is it enough?<em>  
><em>Is it enough to breathe?<em>  
><em>Somebody rip my heart out<em>  
><em>And leave me here to bleed<em>  
><em>Is it enough to die?<em>  
><em>Somebody save my life<em>  
><em>I'd rather be anything but ordinary please<em>

_Is it enough?_  
><em>Is it enough to die?<em>  
><em>Somebody save my life<em>  
><em>I'd rather be anything but ordinary please<em>  
><em>I'd rather be anything but ordinary please.<em>

After the last lingering note, there was a pause of silence. Then the whole room erupted into clapping and cheers. As Mikan made her way down the stairs from the stage, people approached her and started talking to her. Ruka turned to Hotaru.

"Does she get this reception every single time?" he whispered into her ear.

"Yes. Even though she's not a good singer, everyone loves her. It's because she's Mikan," Hotaru replied.

"'She's Mikan?' What's that supposed to mean?" Ruka asked.

"You've been here long enough. You've noticed how she knows everyone in this town personally. Mikan has a way of finding a place in everybody's heart," Hotaru murmured with a slight smile while watching Mikan being mobbed by the townspeople. "But if you tell her I said that…" Hotaru pulled out a photo of Ruka sleeping. "This will be circulated to all of you fangirls. Even the ones in Alice Town."

Ruka sighed. He could never win against the Ice Queen.

"Fine."

"Good. Now go get me crab from the kitchen." Hotaru turned back to her dinner. Ruka stared unbelievingly at the violet-eyed girl. How much did she eat? Ruka resignedly got up from the table and made his way to the kitchen. Peering in, he saw Anna still working furiously although everyone had been served already.

"Anna, I'm here to get Hotaru's crab," he said loudly over the noise from the main room.

Anna absently looked up. When her eyes finally focused on Ruka, a look of surprise came over her face.

"I thought I sent that out already!" Anna let out a frustrated sigh. "With so many people, it's hard to keep track of one single dish. Look in the ice box, it should be there." Anna then returned to her cooking. Ruka found the crab and stepped out of the kitchen. He found Mikan still not even halfway to their table, still talking to people. He walked along the edge of the room where it was the least crowded. As he walked the perimeter of the large room, he observed the various townspeople talking and eating. This was a tight-knit community of people who had known each other for years, some decades. Mikan was lucky to grow up in a place like this. Ruka wish he had. This atmosphere was a complete opposite of Alice Town. Here, people were open and friendly, not hesitating to inquire after an ill family member. In Alice Town, everyone was private and closed-off. There wasn't much interaction between neighbors.

"You…you PERVERT!"

Ruka started at the shrill exclamation. That voice was Mikan's. He pushed his way through the crowd towards her. Near the entryway of the saloon, the crowd had formed a circular space. In the middle of the circle was a curious sight. Mikan was sprawled on the floor, and a tall man dressed in all black towering over her. Ruka couldn't see the man's face but could tell from the tanned broad shoulders that he was a seasoned cowboy. Ruka burst into the circle.

"Mikan! Are you alright?" he asked slightly panting. Mikan looked up at him.

"Thank goodness you're here! Tell this pervert to stop being a bully and randomly pushing people around!" Mikan pleaded while casting a furious glare at the man in front of her.

"Well, it's not my fault that some people lack a skill called 'balance.' Can you be any clumsier, polka dots?" the man scoffed.

"Don't call me that!" Mikan shouted. "Do you go around knocking people down and looking at their underwear as a hobby, you pervert?"

But Ruka didn't hear Mikan's tirade. The man's voice…it was familiar…

"Natsume?" Ruka hesitated. "What are you doing here?"

The man turned around, amusement present in his crimson eyes.

"I could ask you the same, Ruka."

* * *

><p><strong>AN:<strong> Alright! Natsume's here! Now let's get this party started! :) Read and Review please! And a super big thanks to all my amazing reviewers so far!

The song used is the amazing Avril Lavigne's "Anything But Ordinary" I don't own it!


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